“Has anyone ever sledded all the way down Mt. Everest?” they ask, and then run off to try to teach the baby to fake-cough. (He already taught himself to fake-sneeze.)
They try to teach him to sign ‘hat’ and ‘boots.’ (H wears no hats. He owns no boots.) He blows them kisses and waves bye-bye.
“Can we each eat a tomato? A whole tomato? A roma tomato?” they ask.
Yes, you can eat tomatoes. No, you should not use the ball pump to squirt air at your brother. Yes, I know you didn’t ask about that. Stop anyway. Thank you!
“Can we have chocolate chips?” they ask. I think not. “How about one chip each?” I think not. “Can we read books?” Um, yes.
“Please don’t break my toe,” the eight-year-old says to the five-year-old, but he’s joking. I checked.
Shall we head outside? I say. Suddenly I am alone in the living room. The backyard, however, is highly populated.
“Can I share my apple with Eli?” the eight-year-old asks. Milk, signs Eli. Milk milk milk milk.
“If I were a country, I would pick USA. If I were a state, I would pick California,” the ten-year-old says.
“Not me,” says the three-year-old. “I would pick whichever one was purple.”
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
A house full of voices and personalities. These are the moments we tend to forget, but they are so important. Thanks for sharing them.
Thanks for enjoying them with me.
the things their little minds put together! those days of endless questions…i’d almost forgotten about that! now questions are rarely about them (unless a borrower is wanting a car…) and more about “mom, could you….” love how you captured the innocence of their curiosity and play!